Paper articles of apparel



Jan. 2, 1934.

H. G. HILLARD PAPER ARTICLES OF APPAREL Filed 001;. 18, 1932 fbg/rauf.Patented Jan. 2, 1934 ik.

Y 'faussev PAPER ARTICLEso APPAREL Henry G. Hillard, Regina, v,Saskatchewan, Canada, assigner of fifty-one one-hundredths to Ira H.Bowman, trustee, and one-fifth to Ira H. Bowman, Regina, Saskatchewan,Canada Application October 18, 1932. Serial No. 638,317

5 Claims.

The utilization of paper in the manufacture of hats is not of itselfnew. Plaits or braids of at ,or twisted paper of various kinds have been'stitched together and reinforced by thread or flexible wire to form hatbodies, but by the very nature of the material and its treatment theproduction of soft, exible hats as by knitting or .crcclieting has notbeen satisfactorily attained.

The object of this invention is the production of a soft paper strand ina form capable of being successfully manipulated as a yarn by means ofcrochet or knitting needles and thereby .fabricated into a homogeneoussoft pliable resili- 'ent fabric in the form of a hat or similararticle.

For a better understanding of the procedure involved, the several stepsare graphically set forth by way of example in the accompanying drawing,wherein Fig. 1 represents a strip of the paper stock;

Fig. 2 a tube formed by curling the strip and securing the marginaledges;

Fig. '3 a tubular strand drawn into the fabric 30 .by a crochet hook orneedle; and

Fig. l a fragmentL of the resultant fabric.

The strand of material lends itself to manipu-v lation in crocheting,knitting and weaving machines and it will beunderstood that hand manip--ulation, as indicated in Fig. 3, is by way of illustration only.

As a starting material I employ a soft Vunglazed paper stock of noparticular inherent strength such, for example, as semi-crepe paper asit comes from the mill, which has little resistance to deformation but adegree of elasticity or stretch, say from 3-l0%.

The material is cut into strips 11, of PA to l" in width, which are thenfolded transversely, the marginal edges being preferably securedtogether as by a suitable gum as at 12, resulting in tubular strands 13of A say 1A," in diameter, preferably single ply and having no rawedges; which strands are transversely crushable and lend themselves likeyarn to being manipulated by knitting or crochet needles to form thefabric 14 of a shaped hat which may be rolled or crushed into smallcompass and again restored to normal shape for wearing withoutdeterioration or permanent set.

The size of the Ystrand'which depends upon the width of the paper stripwill naturally be gov-` erned by the purpose to be served,V whether thefabric is to be of coarse or fine texture.

By the gumming of its meeting edges, the tube ls transversely sealed sothat the trapping of air therein tends to give the strand body and life,preventing total collapse orv flattening while the strands are beinginter-engaged and interlaced in the process of fabrication.

The construction of the strands and their interlaced relation is such asto render the article of apparel so made substantially weather-proof ifnot subjected to unreasonably rough handling when wet and it is easilydried without distortion or permanent injury. However, the material,preferably before fabrication, may be chemically treated by suitablewell known weather-proofing substances whereby to render the samewaterrepellent, or the strands may be supercially coated in such manneras not to impair the softness and flexibility of the same. By employingtinted paper any desired color of the finished article may be attained,and va silk-like v,lustre may be imparted to the fabric by treatment ofthe strands with suitable known chemicals which .will notv impair thephysical characteristics of the same. f Y

The fabricated article, by reason ofthe material employed, the formationof the strand and the interlaced structure possesses a texture which isyielding, resilient, conformable, and readily deformable without takinga set. A hat so made maybe rolled or crushed into a small compact massand may be restored to normal shape uninjured. The article isinexpensivefrom the standpoints ofmaterial and labor cost, is durable,and presents withal an attractive appearance quite inconsistent with itscheapness.

While, as hereinbefore set forth, my invention finds itsprimeapplication to the employment of paper as a starting material, yet othersubstances may be employed with measurably satisfactory results ifsubstantially impermeable to air and the strand be made therefrom intubular form, such for instance as Cellophane.v

By'the term tubular is meant a strand which has capacity for thetrapping of air therein as distinguished from a fiat strip or onetightly twisted into a cord, not necessarily` a Ystrand which is ofuniform cylindrical section. The characteristic body of the strand andthe resultant .plumpness of the crocheted fabric of my invention may beobtained by a lateral crushing of a strip of material Vin such manner asto trap sufficient air therein to prevent complete co1- lapsing whilebeing worked into the fabric. Also, by the use of the descriptive termsemi-crepe is meant a paper having similar characteristics 8 oflongitudinal elasticity, by Whatever trade name designated.

I claim: 1 Y 1. A` homogeneous fabric including longitudinally elasticsealed tubular strands of crushable 10 semi-crepe cellulose materialsubstantially irnpermeable to air.

2. An article of manufacture formed i fabricvv gli comprising interlacedtwistless tubular strands of soft longitudinally elastic paper.

Y 3. An article of manufacture formed of homogeneous fabric comprisinginterlaced tubular strands of semi-crepe paper.

4. An article of manufacture formed of lhomogeneous fabric comprisingcrocheted tubular strands of semi-crepe paper.

. 5 A` An `article of manufacture formed of homogeneous fabriccomprising interwoven tubular l lstrands of weather-proof semi-crepepaper.

HENRY G. HILLARD.

